Together
by Adventuresomely
Summary: So you see, not all fairytales have a happy ending.


_Let's step back for a moment, reverse time to that fateful day – the day Claus went alone to face the drago who had killed his and Lucas' mother. Can you see it in your mind as clear as day? Can you see the young ginger, with his hand clenched so tightly around his knife as he approaches the beast that towers over him? Do you seem him as he is mauled – his arm ripped off, his eye torn out and his body mangled so badly and covered in so much blood that it's hard to recognize him? Stop there, then, and erase everything you just saw. It's nothing but a fairytale now._

"Cl-Claus wait for me!"

Oh, how Claus wouldn't be happy to hear that voice when they were so close to Drago Plateau. He had told Lucas to stay behind - he didn't want his dear brother to be harmed, and he alone wanted to avenge their mother. It had sparked one of their biggest fights since as long as Lucas could remember – one where the younger blonde was adamant to come with while his brother vehemently denied him the option. Claus had struck out at his twin, knocking him to the ground where he proceeded to kick the blonde. A string of profanities left the ginger's mouth – words Lucas had never once heard the other speak before, and especially not to him. It all left Lucas shaking and crying as he lay in pain on the ground.

Claus had desperately tried to keep him away, but once Lucas had recovered himself enough, he chased after the other as quickly as his aching body would allow. His concern for his brother greatly outweighed his concern that he would be beaten again – and maybe he would be, too. It didn't matter to him – he cared too deeply for Claus to just let him possibly get eaten by the very creature that had killed their mother. That idea alone was enough to drive him to stay by Claus' side no matter the punishment for doing so.

And the reaction Lucas expected was the exact reaction he got.

Claus' eyes went wide as he heard his twin calling out to him, voice close by. What a terrible place for him to make his presence known – they had just reached drago plateau and were officially in danger at that point. Shooing Lucas home would be nearly impossible now, especially if he'd followed even after Claus' attack on him just a bit earlier. The older twin twisted around to face his brother, a furious expression taking over his usually playful features. Lucas drew closer until he was directly in front of Claus – at which, a sheepish smile found its way to his lips. He opened his mouth, intending to speak and explain why he'd followed – but he was cut off before a word could escape his lips.

"What do you think you're doing here?! You're going to get us both killed, Lucas! Go home! I don't want to see your face until I'm done here!"

Those words stung to hear, and in any normal circumstance Lucas would've backed down immediately. In any normal circumstance, Lucas wouldn't have even followed Claus after what he'd done previously – but this wasn't usual at all. So, as much as those words stung and made him want to cry and go back to his mother's grave, he stood his ground. It was quite the impressive feat for the docile, quiet blonde, and even Claus seemed taken aback when Lucas rebutted - even if he did so meekly.

"N...No... I won't leave you! I won't let what happened to mom happen to you...!"

Tears were starting to well up in Lucas' eyes – though it was unclear if it was from the fact that he was frustrated by Claus' stubbornness, or from how his brother so dearly wanted to get rid of him. He clenched his fists at his sides and stared down at the ground, averting his gaze from the older to the best of his ability. He didn't want Claus to see the tears in his eyes – to see that he was too weak to even hold them back in confrontations like this. Lucas was strong, too – even if he was much more prone to emotional bouts than his brother. He could help fight the drago and intended to do just that, whether Claus wanted him to, or not.

Claus growled under his breath and, for a moment, Lucas felt himself shrink back. He hated this – hated making his brother so upset. He hated how Claus was so stubborn.

"You don't understand, Lucas! You don't understand why this is so important to me!" He shouted in his brother's face, clenching his fists at his sides.

When those words reached Lucas' ears, something inside of the gentle blonde snapped and he roughly shoved Claus, almost making the ginger lose his balance in his surprise. Tears dripped from Lucas' eyes down to his chin, and now it was his turn to hit Claus – and he didn't hold back anything of his actual strength. Lucas punched the ginger square in the stomach and the older gasped as the wind was knocked out of him. For once, the weaker of the two had decided to stand up for himself and Claus was surprised and bewildered by the sudden change. The words that came from Lucas' lips next stung to Claus' pride – especially so since he knew they were true.

"She was my mom, too, you idiot! I loved her, too! You aren't the only one who lost their mom – did you forget?!"

Shaken as Claus was, his pride drove him to try and rebut against what Lucas had said – to try and prove a point that couldn't be proven. He opened his mouth to speak once he'd recovered enough from Lucas' attack to do so – but his attention was immediately taken by something else; something both boys could recognize so easily. It sent them both into hyperawareness almost instantly. The ground was starting to shake and – how both of them quivered when they heard it – a mechanical roar emanated nearby, exactly similar to that of what they'd heard the previous night. It struck such fear into their hearts; both boys had forgotten their argument and couldn't move an inch.

As it came closer and closer, the ground shook more and more – oh, it was so much like the event of the night before, Lucas wanted to cry, but found himself unable to. Terror was beginning to overtake Claus and, while he so badly wanted to run away from the creature that was just beginning to come into view, he had come here for one reason. He intended to follow through with it – but as he watched the figure grow larger and larger as it approached, his courage was failing him fast. The Drago was so horribly deformed like something neither of them had ever seen before – there was no doubt that it was in agony and enraged from it. Was that what had prompted it to attack, before?

It didn't matter – all thoughts immediately ceased when the Drago took notice of them, opening its giant maw. The twins expected it to let out a roar, only... It didn't. A light started to appear in its mouth, growing brighter and brighter, like something they'd never seen before. Lucas hadn't a clue what it was, but he had a feeling it wasn't anything good and none-too-gracefully tackled Claus – just in time, as well. A beam shot from the Drago's mouth moments after and, glancing back, the spot they'd been in was now scorched black and smoldering. It was a horrific sight by itself – no normal Drago would be able to do things like that.

Lucas climbed off Claus, who was absolutely dumbstruck by all of this, after he regained himself enough to. It was at that moment that Claus realized he had no chance of defeating the drago with his small, meager knife. Lucas pulled himself to his feet and ceased Claus' hand – and Claus didn't hesitate for even a moment now to pull himself up and follow the blonde's lead. It was strange how the tides had turned and Lucas was the one who was essentially in charge now, but for the moment the older twin's pride would have to let him give in – they would both die if he didn't cooperate now.

The younger of the twins pulled Claus along as quickly as he could, nearly tripping several times as massive footsteps caused the ground to rumble and shake uncontrollably. They ran until they reached a high cliff, at which point they had to stop because there was simply nowhere else to go. They were both forced to face the Drago, which was coming at them faster than any living creature should be capable of with its massive body weight. With its mouth wide open, it went for the target that was closest to it – Claus.

Lucas saw who it was aiming for and his stomach dropped at the realization. Claus, Claus... He couldn't let it get Claus – He couldn't let his brother get brutally murdered in front of him, too! And poor Claus was so stricken with terror at the sight of those massive, bloodthirsty fangs, that he couldn't budge an inch. Lucas knew what he had to do - and so, in a self-sacrificial attempt that was eerily similar to his mother's, he jumped in front of Claus and pushed the older behind him. When he faced forward again, he was met with pure agony, and blood splattered across the rocky ground as huge fangs ripped into his delicate body.

Claus watched in absolute horror as the Drago ripped into his brother, practically tearing off one entire side of the blonde in the most gruesome and bloody way one could imagine. Past muscle and fat, one arm was torn to shreds and Lucas' insides were ripped out entirely – the Drago gulping them down like it would a dead animal. Claus couldn't even cry as he watched his twin bleeding out, dying painfully if he wasn't already dead from the horrendous damage he'd taken. It couldn't be happening... It all had to be a horrible nightmare – this couldn't be happening could it? Lucas... Lucas... He'd hurt Lucas so much and the younger had tried to protect him anyway. He'd tried to protect him and he'd died! He'd died just like their mother did!

The Drago's reign of terror wasn't done yet, either. It swept Lucas' bloodied, torn body aside and now focused upon its one remaining target – Claus. Claus was broken, confused and so angry. He was so, very angry. That stupid, damned Drago had claimed both his mother and brother's life and he hadn't been able to stop either of their deaths from happening. He'd been too much of a coward to attack when they needed it the most! Not now – he had nothing to lose. In a blind fury, he ran to the Drago with his knife raised high – it was really a pitiful attempt to kill the powerful beast. Before the ginger even reached the mechanical beast, he was slammed hard by its tail and, as a result, was flung off the cliff.

There was a sickening crack below as Claus' spine was shattered on the rocky valley, and the impact of the Drago's tail alone had splintered his arm so badly that it was more or less a useless sack of flesh. There was no way that the ginger could have survived the massive fall, especially not with the injuries he sustained. Both boys had tried to avenge their mother and both boys had subsequently died together.

Now continue on with the normal plot just as it was when only Claus had died – with these alterations in place.


End file.
